Down-to-earth survival – Elemental by Arthur Snell

Near death experiences and how we should maybe think about moving the Canada. Young Critic, Harper, shares her thoughts on Arthur Snell’s visit to Lichfield Literature Festival to talk about his new book Elemental. 

 

This was a highly enjoyable and informative event, elevated by the beautiful venue in the Lichfield Hub which ensured that the speakers could be seen and heard from every seat. It provided a peaceful atmosphere that allowed you to focus on the talk and appreciate it.

 

The book, ‘Elemental: The new geography of climate change and how we survive it’, is focused on climate change and how we as the human race can survive it. The author of this book, Arthur Snell, began with a personal story that happened to him as he experienced a rockfall above and around him on a mountain, opening his eyes to the bigger picture of climate change. When asked about this he said ‘The changing climate is destabilising entire mountains’ which for me and the rest of the audience opened up the floor for us to all take a moment and step back so that we too could see the bigger picture and try to truly understand what this could mean for us all.

 

Through the course of this book, we explore many key topics, but the central focus is of course the four elements (earth, water, air and fire, in no particular order). When asked why this was, Snell explained that because climate change is such a broad topic, to make this book easier to read and to understand, he decided to categorise it into four elements that everyone is familiar with. It was made clear how each element relates to the climate crisis when we remember the rush for minerals, the heating of the air, the burning of fossil fuels, and the danger of floods and melting ice caps.

 

One of the most down-to-earth moments was when he talked about world events such as the Congo mines and the devastating war in Ukraine, and how they relate to climate change. However, this is also a talk about survival and how if we act soon, it could be alright if we focus our minds on renewable ways to produce energy.

 

At the end of the talk there was a very thoughtful atmosphere, and the floor was opened to questions, such as the safety of nuclear energy storage and where is the best place to live to avoid the worst effects of climate change (Canada if you were wondering).

 

To end the day, I asked him a question: Why humans? I’m sure that we have all heard of climate change to do with the environment and its impact on animal species, so why was this book not focused on that, and instead based on humans and the impact on us? This has a simpler answer than you may expect, it’s simply because humans are the ones who read, not animals or the environment! So that concluded the talk and overall, it was an amazing experience that left everyone with new information about the environment and thoughtful attitudes.

 

By Harper T

 

If you’re aged 11-18 and would like to be a festival reviewer, applications for Young Critics are open for Lichfield Festival – find out more on our website https://lichfieldfestival.org/aspire/young-critics/